The Name Sakura Haruno
by Ruel-chan
Summary: "Man, that was a close one," he mumbled. He closed his eyes, since he felt he could finally relax. "A close one? You're close to getting your balls crushed, I tell you," a sharp voice from beside him said. Kiba had no idea what he had done when he called her name. KibaSaku. AU.
1. Trouble With Names

I had this story (or more like chapter) in mind, and I really wanted to write it, so here you are. I'm not really sure how this story is going to continue though (except for some parts), so the updates will probably not be very frequent. However, when I'm not busy with school, almost the only thing I do is writing. Therefore, I hope the next chapter will be up in not too long!

PS. If you spot any grammar mistakes or spelling errors, please let me know!

Disclaimer: I don't own Sakura, Kiba or Tsume.

The Name Sakura Haruno

Chapter 1: Trouble With Names

* * *

Kiba was yet again stuck with the most annoying girl in the world. The girl who called him _Kibs_, which was a nickname he hated even more than her screeching voice.

"Kibs, what am I going to do?" the girl shrieked. "He wants to break up with me! Can you believe that? We are perfect for each other!" Kiba rolled his eyes, but made it go unnoticed by the girl.

"Yuki, forget that loser," he said in an attempt to cheer her up. That, or make her go away. Yuki shook her head.

"I can't! We, we, we-" she couldn't say anything more before she hid her face in her palms, and sobbed. "I'm going to be all alone now! I'm going to be the loser with no boyfriend!" More sobbing. "I'm going to be like you! All alone!" she cried. He could feel his eyebrow twitch. That girl really had some nerve. It wasn't like he wanted anybody either! The sobbing started to quiet down. After drying her tears with the ends of her sleeves, she sniffled a few times before she completely went silent. Kiba was not so sure he liked that silence.

"Hey, we can date!" she exclaimed while clapping her hands together like that was the best idea ever. Fear crossed Kiba's face. This was really bad. Really bad indeed.

"Don't you think you're giving up too soon? I mean, you two were perfect for each other!" Kiba said perhaps a bit too enthusiastically. Yuki looked at him in confusion.

"But didn't you just say I should forget that loser?" she asked.

"I did?"

Yuki nodded. "You did."

"You know you shouldn't listen to me! You like him, right?" Kiba asked.

"Yes."

"You want to fight for him, right?"

"Yes."

"Then what are you waiting for? Go get him, girl!" Yuki seemed to carefully think over his advice. She suddenly clasped her hands together again, which made Kiba slightly jump.

"You're right! I should fight for him! Thanks, Kibs!" The shriek-voiced girl ran out the door after giving him a short wave. Kiba grinned in satisfaction. Smooth, Kiba. He was definitely a genius.

* * *

The next day, Kiba saw Yuki at a park. He contemplated on turning away before she noticed him, however, it was already too late. Yuki waved at him. With hesitation, he waved back.

"How did it go?" Kiba was about to walk up to Yuki, but completely stopped when he saw the dejected look on her face. She continued walking though, and hugged him.

"He said he really meant it when he said it was over." Kiba grimaced, and petted her head in an awkward way.

"There, there. The sea is full of fish, or something," he said. His attempt on comforting her was rather laughable. Yuki let go of him, and took two steps away from him. The look on her face unsettled him.

"So, how about we two get together?" she said with a playful wink. Kiba immediately felt every bone in his body freeze. No, no, no. This was not what he wanted. He was supposed to get away from her, not date her. Not to be stuck with her forever. 'Cause that was the type she was. The clinging, annoying type.

"We cant," Kiba quickly said. Yuki pouted.

"Why?" she said sadly.

"Because," Kiba said, trying to come up with something. "Because I already have a girlfriend." His face lit up while he said this. Man, he was a genius. "That's right, I have a girlfriend!" he repeated. Yuki's eyes looked doubtfully at him.

"What's her name?" she asked. Great, Kiba was again in trouble. He sucked at coming up with names. Just when he tried to figure out the name of his "girlfriend", a lady, who was speaking in her cell phone, walked by.

"Yes, that's right. Oh, and remember: send it to Sakura Haruno, OK? Sakura Haruno," she said. A light bulb lit in Kiba's head.

"Her name is Sakura Haruno," he said to Yuki.

"Yes?" The lady with the cell phone turned to look at whoever called her name. Kiba's eyes closed in annoyance. A new problem arose. However, also a new idea. With a big smile on his face, he turned around to this 'Sakura Haruno'.

"What a coincidence! What are you doing here, babe?" He walked up to the lady, and kissed her cheek. Sakura Haruno stood astonished. Did a random guy just call her babe and kiss her cheek? Who was this guy that deserved to get his balls crushed? Sakura lifted her head to look at his face.

"Excuse me? Who are-" The rest of her sentence was interrupted when Kiba put his arm around her shoulder. Sakura froze.

"This is my girlfriend, Sakura. Sakura, this is Yuki," Kiba said, and pointed at the now teary girl before him. Yuki was just seconds away from bursting into tears.

"So you do have a girlfriend," she said with a shaky voice. "I won't bother you anymore. Good bye!" Yuki hurriedly walked away. Kiba let go of the Sakura, who was now fuming, and sighed in relief.

"Man, that was a close one," he mumbled. He closed his eyes, since he felt he could finally relax.

"A close one? You're close to getting your balls crushed, I tell you," a sharp voice from beside him said. Kiba's eyes abruptly opened again. That's right, he had to deal with the pink-haired girl next to him now.

"I'm so sorry for… UGH!" Kiba couldn't say any more after being hit _hard_ in the stomach.

"Count yourself as lucky for not being hit further down!" Sakura screamed at him. "How dare you? I'm calling the police!" She quickly dialled the police's number, however, Kiba managed to snatch her cell phone away before she got to talk to the police. With pleading eyes, Kiba tried to persuade Sakura into rethinking calling him in. She looked at him with furious eyes, but in the end she agreed she wouldn't.

"However, if you ever see me again, you better run!" she threatened before she left him there. Finally, Kiba could feel completely relieved. He managed slipping away from the claws of _two_ girls. Man, he really was a genius. Content with himself, he thought he should treat himself to a good meal. Which meant he _coincidentally_ visited his scary mother at the time she had dinner.

"Mom, it's Kiba!" he yelled as he closed the door of his old home. Kiba had already moved out at the age of 16. His mom's anger scared him out just like it had done with his dad. Now he was already 22 years old, and studied to become a vet. Every single time he visited his mom, she told him how unbelievable she thought it was that her useless son actually got in. Way to be a loving mother. As he entered the kitchen, he was met by a wonderful smell, a huge dog and the annoyed look of his mother.

"Oh, so the beggar is here," his mother, Tsume, said. Kiba had a sheepish grin plastered on his face. He gave her mother a kiss on the cheek, before he sat down on a kitchen chair and petted Kuromaru.

"Smells good, ma," he said. Tsume snorted. She had told him time and time again to learn how to cook for himself, but he would either buy take away or crawl home to his mother. Today though, she didn't mind that he came. When dinner was at the table and they ate, Tsume decided it was time to confront her son.

"So Kiba, do you date anyone at the moment?" she nonchalantly asked. Her thoughts behind asking it though, was not so innocent. Kiba abruptly stopped eating, and an un-chewed piece of meat lay in his gaping mouth. His mother would not ask such a question without having other thoughts behind it. That was something he had learned throughout his childhood. Slowly he started chewing his food again, but he didn't answer his mother.

"So?" she asked impatiently. Having already chosen to ignore the question, he quickly ate up his food to get out of the house fast. However, he didn't even get as far as to getting up from his chair before she talked again.

"Answer me!" she demanded. Kiba gulped nervously. He never held a chance against her when she used that tone.

"W-why do you ask?"

"Of course I want to know if my son dates anyone. I want to meet her if you do."

"Mom, I'm only 22. There's no rush," he said.

"You mean you're _already _22. Don't tell me you can't even get a girlfriend?" Tsume knew perfectly well how easy it was to agitate her son. He was almost as short-tempered as her.

"Will you stop looking down at me?" he yelled.

"Relax. If you can't get a girlfriend, I'll set you up with someone. My friend at work actually has a really cute daughter. She's kind, well-mannered, and," she leaned over the table as if she knew something really good, "she can cook." Kiba groaned. He really didn't care about her cooking skills, and he was absolutely _not _interested in being set up with someone.

"I even told my friend that you'll go to dinner tomorrow-"

"I have a girlfriend!" Kiba loudly exclaimed. First, Tsume looked shocked at him, but then she grinned.

"Great, what's her name?" she asked. Oh, great. He was in that situation again.

"Sakura Haruno," he answered before thinking. Kiba had never wanted to slit his own throat, but right now he really did.

"Sakura, huh? That's a cute name," his mother said. Her son could only nod. If someone would tell him this was all a dream, he would serve that person forever. "Invite her over," Tsume then told him. He looked panicky at her. No, no, NO.

"Mom, I don't think that's a good idea."

"This Saturday," was all his mother said before she rose from her chair to clean the dishes.

"That's in two days! You can't expect her to come at such short notice. Please, ma," he pleaded. Tsume, however, had no mercy. Well then. Time to find this Sakura Haruno again. The same girl that wanted to crush his balls.

"Great," he mumbled, and banged his head in the table multiple times.

* * *

_To be continued._


	2. Crushed Balls

**Here's the second chapter! The third will probably be up sometime in the weekend. Thank you so much to you who read, favourite and follow this story. I appreciate it a lot!**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the characters (except for Yuki who's barely mentioned).

* * *

The Name Sakura Haruno

Chapter 2: Crushed Balls

* * *

It wasn't like Kiba had believed finding Sakura Haruno would be a picnic, but it proved to be almost impossible. Even though he had called several Sakura Harunos that he had found in the telephone catalogue, none of them had been the right one. If he didn't find her before tomorrow evening, he would be dead, or he would have to go on a date with the 'cute' girl his mother had suggested. Both seemed equally bad.

"Why don't you just find a random girl, and ask her to play this Sakura Haruno?" his friend, Naruto, suggested. He was currently lying on Kiba's bed while he balanced a spinning basketball on his index finger. It slightly annoyed Kiba that Naruto came up with something he couldn't.

"Well, I guess there's a problem there. No girls want to be around you," Naruto said. Kiba shot a glare his way.

"No one but Yuki," Naruto added.

"Don't mention her. Anyway, it's not true! What you suggested shouldn't be that hard," Kiba said.

"You say that now, Kibs. Reality is a bit harder." Naruto threw the ball at Kiba, and Kiba gripped it.

"Don't call me that!" Naruto just laughed at him before he got up from the bed.

"Anyway, what did you say she was called?" Naruto asked.

"You said her name a minute ago!" Kiba said in disbelief. He couldn't believe his friend could forget a name that easily. Yeah, sure Kiba had problems with names too. They were hard to make up in a stressful situation, and they were hard to remember after being told. However, Kiba still found it unbelievable that Naruto had even graduated high school.

"Sakura Haruno," Kiba told him. Naruto furrowed his brows like he was thinking.

"I think I've heard that name before," Naruto mumbled. Suddenly he lifted a finger in realisation. "That pretty girl at Sasuke's party!" he shouted.

"What did she look like?" Kiba asked.

"She was pretty," Naruto answered. Kiba pinched the bridge of his nose, and closed his eyes. He swore he would one day end the life of the man called Naruto Uzumaki. If only he wasn't better than him in fighting. With a sigh Kiba asked for more details.

"She was slender, and had green or blue eyes. The most noticeable thing about her was her pink hair though. Also, she didn't like physical contact. My stomach had to find that out the painful way," Naruto said while rubbing his belly. Kiba's eyes widened. There was no doubt about it. This was his Sakura Haruno! This was the girl!

"Do you know any way of contacting her?" Kiba asked while grabbing Naruto's shoulders. Naruto could see determination in his friend's eyes. It wasn't weird though, because Tsume was rather frightening.

"Maybe Ino knows," Naruto answered. There was a silence between them before Kiba broke it.

"Who's Ino?" he asked.

"Hey, don't criticise me when you're just as bad as me with names! We went to the same high school, man. Ino Yamanaka. We even were in the same class. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Remember?"

"Weren't you just describing yourself?" Kiba asked.

"Ino Yamanaka!" Naruto repeated. Kiba let go of Naruto's shoulders. Instead he sat down on his desk chair. He rubbed his chin, trying to figure out whom Naruto was talking about. Blonde hair, blue eyes…

"Oh, she was the blonde with blue eyes!" Kiba shouted.

"I just said that!" Naruto said in defeat. He was ignored, however, because Kiba was already looking Ino Yamanaka up in the telephone catalogue.

"I have her number," Naruto said. An irritated glare was passed his way. A minute later, Kiba was calling her. The conversation had been rather short. Not because Ino didn't want to talk more. Oh, not at all. She was quite interested in why Kiba wanted Sakura's number; however, Kiba had no intention to talk. He couldn't risk her telling Sakura about it before he reached her. Just as Kiba was dialling the number, he suddenly realised something.

"You call her," Kiba told Naruto.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I don't think she would agree to meet me. Ask her to meet you at a café to talk over a cup of coffee," Kiba said.

"Isn't that a bit rushed? You're supposed to meet your mother tomorrow. That means you have to meet her tonight," Naruto said.

"Then ask her to meet you tomorrow morning!" Kiba said in frustration. He nudged his phone in Naruto's face.

"I have my own phone," Naruto said.

"Whatever. Just call her!" Kiba growled. Anticipation grew in Kiba as Naruto dialled the number. A female voice was then heard on the other side.

"Hey, this is Naruto Uzumaki! I don't know if you remember me from Sasuke's party, but I'd really like to meet you over a cup of coffee tomorrow morning," Naruto said. He surely didn't beat around the bush. Kiba heard Sakura answer something, but it was hard to make out the words.

"Ha-ha, don't worry. I'm not a creep," Naruto said. Kiba gritted his teeth. If Sakura didn't want to meet Naruto because he acted idiotically, he would surely find a way to end his life.

"Sasuke?" Naruto suddenly asked. He glanced at Kiba. "Sure, Sasuke will be there too!" Two seconds after, Naruto ended the conversation.

"Man, why are you looking at me like that? And shut your mouth, you're gaping like an idiot!" he said as he saw the look Kiba was giving him.

"Sasuke? Why did you add him into this?" Again Naruto did something unbelievable. In high school people had called him the number one unpredictable guy. Indeed he was, but Kiba didn't see that as any triumph. As a friend of the unpredictable guy, it made it annoying.

"Hey, don't be mad. You don't have to _actually_ bring him, but she immediately said yes when I said he would come," Naruto said. "To be honest, she said she would _only_ come if he came." Kiba sighed. So not simply had they lied about Naruto meeting her, they also lied about Sasuke. He really feared for his family jewels.

* * *

On Saturday morning, Kiba waited at the café Naruto had agreed to meet her at. They were supposed to meet 11 o'clock, but he had come half an hour earlier in anxiety. Sakura somewhat scared him. Maybe because he really did believe she would act out on her threat. Well, she hadn't really said anything about _what _she would do that would make it best for him to run at her sight, however, he could only guess. When the clock was ten fifty, Sakura showed up. Her clothes were quite casual, but he could see she had made an extra effort. It was probably for Sasuke. She looked around in the café with hopes to spot the two people she thought she was there to meet.

Kiba wiped his clammy hands on his trousers before he stood up. With a breath of resolve he walked towards her. Just as he was about to call her name, she slowly looked his way. In panic, he did a quick turn. He didn't stop walking, which made him end up in the male bathroom. In his head was the repetition of determined and positive words. He tried to convince himself that he had nothing to worry about. None of his reassuring words worked though. Not before he thought of his mother. In a flash he was outside the door. With steady steps he walked into the café, and towards Sakura's table. She looked a bit concerned. Maybe not so weird when both Naruto and Sasuke had yet to arrive, and the clock had gone past 11.

Kiba thought of his mother's rage. He played her angry eyes in repeat in his head. They were scary. They were terrifying. They were murderous. They were looking at him. It dawned on him that he no longer thought of his mother's eyes, but rather stared into the eyes of the very Sakura Haruno. With an abrupt motion, Sakura rose from her seat. She said something to him, but he was too light-headed to hear anything. All he knew was that he needed to get away from there, and that _fast_. Kiba quickly grabbed his stuff from the table he sat at before, and made a sprint towards the exit.

A fuming girl was right behind his heel. It was probably out of place, but in his head Kiba thought of how ironic this scene was. Usually it had been the opposite, him chasing the girls. He had never done it with the meaning to strangle them though, which he assumed Sakura wanted to right now. Her steps didn't slow down either. Kiba, however, had big troubles continuing running. He had always been more of a sprint guy than an enduring one. A lot of energy that exploded in a second was a pretty accurate way to describe him. This running past one block to another, however, was tiring him out quite fast. When they arrived at the park he first had met her, she finally caught up with him, and yanked him down on the grass. Sakura was now sitting on his stomach with her hands holding his down. Her strength was terrifying.

"You piece of crap." Well, that was a way to put it. He tried to wriggle out her grip, but to no use.

"Didn't I warn you? If you ever saw me again, you'd better run," she said.

"To be fair, I did," Kiba replied. He had no idea how his voice was so calm. Sakura's eyes squinted as she looked at him. The hatred was seeping out of her. Suddenly her face got closer to his.

"First you claim I'm your girlfriend. Then you dare to show up before my face again!" she growled. This girl surely needed some chill pills.

"You've had a bad morning?" Horrible choice of words. Sakura leaned even closer to him, but before she got to talk again, Kiba spoke.

"If you get any closer, I'll kiss you," he said. His eyes slightly widened at the blush that formed on her cheeks. It amused him that she would be so innocent. The amusement didn't last long though. Desperately he tried to get out of her grasp. Her eyes made chills run up and down Kiba's back.

"Please understand- UGH!" Kiba rolled to his side with two hands holding over his private area. Sakura stood over him with a content look on her face.

"That's how it goes when you mess with me!" she proudly said. Kiba whimpered in agony. After rolling around in pain for a while, Kiba opened his mouth to speak again. He had no idea where this newfound courage came from, but he certainly didn't like it. It was going to cost him his future children.

"Aren't you supposed to be meeting with someone right now?" he asked. Sakura's content look disappeared from her face. Instead it was replaced with a slowly realising one.

"I mean, Naruto and Sasuke are probably waiting." Great, now he was even smiling. Or more like _smirking_.

"You know them?" she asked, however, it was more like she confirmed her suspicion.

"You were never meant to meet them, you know," he confessed. For a moment Kiba thought she would take it quite well, however, he found out he was very wrong. She started to stomp at him. The only way for him to get away from being completely crushed under her feet was to roll around on the grass like an idiot. When he had managed to roll further away from her, he could go up on his feet again. Sakura was soon in front of him though. Now he was getting hit instead. However, she didn't hold the power she did earlier. It was more like a little girl hitting someone in frustration. He shortly noticed her glossy eyes.

"Don't lie to me like that," she yelled. "Don't make me worry about how I should behave in front of the person I like when he's not even there." A few more weak punches landed on Kiba's chest before he grabbed her wrists.

"How about behaving like yourself?" Kiba suggested. Sakura glared up at him, but her eyes held no power anymore either. She started banging her head on his chest, but Kiba embraced her in a hug.

"Look, I know you're gonna go _loco_ on me again if I don't hold you like this, because what I'm about to say will most likely anger you. I have a little problem though, and it would be preferable for me if you agree on helping me," he said before taking a little pause to hear if she had anything to say. No words were heard from her though.

"Mom, look! There's a couple embracing each other!" a small girl said while pointing at them. Even Kiba couldn't help blushing at that, but he still didn't release her. The little girl's mother hushed her before dragging her away in embarrassment.

"Let go of me," Sakura said.

"Listen, I might have told my mom that I have a girlfriend, and I might have told her the girlfriend's name is Sakura Haruno. Now she wants me to invite my "girlfriend" over to eat with us tonight," Kiba said. "Therefore-please-come-and-pretend-to-be-my-girlfriend." He rushed through the last sentence. It took awhile for Sakura to comprehend what he'd said, but when she did, she removed his hand from her, and took a step back. Kiba was fairly shocked to see her _smiling_. That was probably the last he had expected. Pleased that she didn't turn maniac again, he smiled back at her. That smile soon faltered though. Shortly Sakura's hands were placed on his shoulders, and before he could understand what was happening, her knee met with the place between his legs. In a new-struck agony, he fell to his knees crying in pain.

"Don't be ridiculous," she said, and turned away to leave. It was settled. There were no future Inuzuka babies.

* * *

_To be continued. _


	3. Dinner With Mom

**I was originally going to post this in the weekend, but time flew faster than I wanted. Here is chapter three though. **

**Disclaimer: I own none of the characters. **

* * *

The Name Sakura Haruno

Chapter 3: Dinner With Mom

* * *

Kiba lay on the grass as he watched the pink-haired girl walk away.

"W-wait," he stuttered in pain. To his surprise, she actually stopped. Her face, however, was still turned the other way.

"If you go to the dinner with me, I will set you up with Sasuke," he said. Sakura turned around, but her eyes showed distrust. "This time for real," he added.

"And how will you do that? You're not very close, are you? I didn't even see you at his party," she replied. Kiba slightly grimaced. He sat up from his earlier position.

"Oh, I was there," he said. Sakura flipped her hair back, and crossed her arms before her chest.

"I didn't see you there," she said.

"Did you see everyone at the party?" Kiba snapped at her. "Besides I…" He trailed off his sentence.

"You what?" she asked.

"Lay drunk in a corner," he shamefully answered. A snort what heard from her. In a failed attempt to stifle her laughter, she clasped a hand in front of her mouth. It was all in vain though, 'cause she was soon laughing at him pretty openly. When he told her to stop, her laughter only rose higher. At the time he said it wasn't funny, she had completely lost it. Kiba scrunched his nose, but didn't say anything. After all, he would rather deal with a laughing Sakura than the bloody Sakura he had met earlier.

"The way you said it," she halfway laughed out, "was so cute." Kiba blinked a few times. Cute? He would've been mad if anyone pointed it out, but he could definitely feel a small blush creeping forward on his cheeks. Obviously Sakura noticed this, because she cocked an eyebrow and looked rather amused. Kiba got the odd feeling that their roles had switched around from earlier when he held around her. He still had a mission to think about though.

"You like Sasuke, right?" Kiba asked. She didn't answer at first. Instead she looked at the ground and kicked at seemingly nothing. Her white ballerina pumps got stained by the green grass.

"Yes," Sakura murmured.

"You want to fight for him, right?"

"What?" Sakura frowned in confusion.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go get him, girl!" Kiba yelled with a fist bump held in the air. The unlucky boy somehow had the feeling that Sakura was quite different from the annoying girl, Yuki. He also realised her 'what?' wasn't the same as 'yes'. His hand fell to his side, and he rose up from the grass.

"I think you should go for it," Kiba told her. "Sasuke is single _now_, but who knows how long that will last." He crossed his arms.

Sakura hesitated before she asked, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing. Just that Sasuke has seemingly taken an interest in a girl named… Ino," he said.

"Ino Yamanaka?" Sakura asked in fury. Kiba just realised he had said the name of the girl that gave him Sakura's number. Evidently Kiba had no imagination when it came to names.

"Sure," he replied with a shrug. Sakura's hands formed like fists, and Kiba feared she'd have an outburst that would lead him into new pain. However, even though she hissed like a cat – which in Kiba's mind concluded that she was a lunatic – she didn't do anything towards him. Instead of raging, she tried to calm her nerves by breathing in and out. It frightened Kiba that a girl could go that crazy over a guy. Also, it wasn't like it was actually true. Not that he planned on telling Sakura that. As far as he knew, Sasuke had yet to take a liking to any girl. Kiba didn't blame him. The fan-girls had probably made all girls seem disgusting and crazy.

"I can help you," Kiba offered. "Sasuke and I might not be best buds, but Naruto is really close to him, so I'd easily fix that date for you." Easily was a heavy exaggeration, however, he would use all that he had to get her help.

"Why are you so desperate?" Sakura asked.

"My mom… she's even scarier than you." Sakura grunted unamused.

"_If_ I help you, when will the date be?"

"In a week." Kiba said with groundless confidence. Her boring eyes made him shrink, but he couldn't falter. He wouldn't.

"Deal."

* * *

After having gone through all that trouble for just a dinner, Kiba did not hesitate on telling Sakura how he thought she should behave for the evening. She was told to be polite and sweet and cheery. By no means should she say anything that could anger Tsume.

"Please let go of that headstrongness of yours," Kiba had told her. At that Sakura merely rolled her eyes. He had repeated several times that it was enough with one violent lady. Two would make the house collapse. Sakura was supposed to be picked up at six o'clock. She was not fully comfortable with telling him her address, but after giving him a fair share of warnings, she had finally told him.

"What do you think I will do? Rob you? I really want some girl perfume and tampons," Kiba said mockingly. It hadn't been the wisest choice of words, however, he had already estimated that he would never learn. To Sakura's surprise, Kiba was not a minute late. She knew he had come early at the café, but this was a little different. This was a more planned meeting, at least on her behalf. As they drove in his car – or more like his mother's – Sakura couldn't keep her curiosity inside.

"I know I've agreed to play your girlfriend this evening, but what about after that? You don't expect me to continue, right?" she asked. Kiba shook his head.

"Nope. After awhile I'll tell my mother you dumped me. I will be safe for some time after that, 'cause she can't force a new girlfriend on her son when he's heartbroken," he answered. His voice was buttered with fake grief.

"So I'll play the bad one?" Sakura mostly mumbled to herself. She actually looked a bit forward to act as the role of his girlfriend. It was kind of exciting. Kiba would never get to know that though. Before they entered Tsume's house, Sakura frantically pulled the hem of her skirt, and removed imaginary dust.

"You know you're just _pretending_ to be my girlfriend, right?" Kiba asked with a cocked eyebrow. His comment made Sakura blush, and her hands refrained from pulling at her clothes anymore.

"I know that. Now are you actually going to turn the doorknob?" She tried to speak as sharply as possible. Her pride had taken one too many hits after meeting the shaggy guy. They were met with a smell that made them drool when they walked into the hallway.

"Ma, we're here!" Kiba shouted. Soon enough, Tsume stood in the hall with them. Her face lit up when she saw the pink-haired woman beside her son. How come her son managed to catch such a cute-looking girl? She completely ignored her son, and went straight towards Sakura. Tsume's arms embraced her in a bear hug, and she would only let go when Kiba started pulling at her, telling her that she was crushing Sakura. He formally introduced them to each other, and Sakura acted her role perfectly. His mother waved at them to enter the kitchen, but slightly froze when her son left Sakura after having taken his own jacket and shoes off.

"Kiba, what are you doing? Help your girlfriend with her jacket," Tsume ordered. She nudged his side when he walked past her.

"Ma," he murmured irritated. A feeling of discomfort lay in Sakura's stomach as she entered Tsume's kitchen. She couldn't help the feeling that this was a meeting with her boyfriend's mother, though he was a fake one. Tsume had made Thai food, and even though it wasn't Kiba's favourite, it certainly was enough to make him nearly jump into his seat. A cough made him look at his mother.

"Your manners are lacking, Kiba," she sternly said. She turned to Sakura. "I'm so sorry that my son is this troublesome. How you cope with him is beyond me." Sakura smiled the sweetest smile she could muster.

"Oh, he's actually a very lovely man, Tsume," Sakura replied. Even though he knew it was false, Kiba got a bit taken aback by the compliment. The cute smile, and the way she shyly brushed her hair behind her ear, made him realise that she was a pretty good actress. After being scolded by his mother, Kiba helped Sakura with pulling her chair further out from the table, and close to the table again as she sat down. It didn't take long time after they had begun eating before Tsume started her interrogation.

"I'm really curious about how you two met. He didn't even mention you until two days ago," she told Sakura.

"Mom, it's a really boring story-"

"I will tell!" Sakura yelled excitedly. She was well aware of the glare that was shot her way, but she easily ignored that. Now was her time to make his face the reddest tomato at the market. Sakura coughed before talking, like she was about to hold a long speech.

"We first met at Konoha hospital where I work." Tsume nodded at that, pleased that her son dated a girl with high goals. "I was actually finished for the day, but one of the nurses said I had to see a new patient. Of course I declined. I had had a rough day, and I wanted nothing more than to relax at home. However, the desperation in the nurse's voice convinced me to check on the patient. And the patient was none other than Kiba-love," Sakura sweetly caressed Kiba's cheek as she said his name. He, however, didn't like where this was going, and the 'love' after his name did not belong there. At the moment he couldn't complain though. Sakura played the "in love" part really well.

Sakura continued telling the story. "Kiba had only twisted his foot, but he still came crying to me. First I thought he was creepy, you know? Why did a grown man cry over a twisted ankle? However, as I told him it was only a twisted ankle, Kibs confessed that he had been looking at me for quite some time." The frustration Kiba felt made his whole body itch. _Kibs_. "Apparently he used to go to the same café as me. He then asked me if I wanted to meet him there someday. I declined, however, the next day he came at the hospital again. Day after day he came. One day when I had had enough, I finally agreed to it. From there on I got to know what a sweet and loving guy Kiba is, and," Sakura looked at Kiba with love-struck eyes, "I fell in love." It was fairly impossible for Tsume to comprehend that this was her son she was talking about. A strained smile adorned her face, and she told them what a lovely story that was. Her real thoughts were completely different though. When did her son become the mushy romantic type? Had he always been that way? Where did she go wrong in raising him? Kiba's face wasn't as red as Sakura had wished, but she was certainly getting there.

"He even gave me roses that day," she added. A pair of arms flew in the air, and a loud thud was heard. Kiba's chair had tilted backwards as he – in shock – threw his hands backwards and made the chair fall in unbalance.

"Oh my, Kibs. You fell on the floor," Sakura said in a monotonous voice. Kiba growled at her, but realised how bad that would look like in front of his mother, so he complained about the pain instead, hoping Tsume wouldn't think he growled at Sakura.

"Ow, it hurts," he complained.

"Did you twist your ankle?" Sakura asked with hidden amusement. Tsume scrunched her nose. He couldn't be in pain because of that again, could he? Man, _where_ did she go wrong? Kiba couldn't help the nasty glare he gave Sakura. _Roses? _A man like himself wouldn't give anybody roses! That was for gushy, syrupy and stupid people like Naruto! Sakura smirked at Kiba's flushed face.

"You OK, babe?" she asked.

"Sure, darling." Kiba leaned closer to Sakura so Tsume wouldn't hear. "I just think we should let mom talk for a bit before _someone_ loses her tongue," he hissed. Sakura's smirk did not falter.

"So ma, what's been up with you lately?" Tsume was pulled out of her reverie about what her wrongdoings as a parent could have been.

"Not much. I've spoken with Hana a lot," she replied. Kiba was happy that the focus had shifted from Sakura's _interesting imagination_.

"How's she?"

"Good, good." All three of them became silent. The only noise was the clinking of metal meeting plates. They sat like that for a while. Sakura couldn't help thinking how glad she was that this wasn't a real meeting with her boyfriend's parents. The atmosphere could probably be described as _awkward_. Tsume, being usually loud and cheery, couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"So Sakura," she said, "are you the same age as Kiba, or?" Kiba bit his tongue to not get riled up. After all, she couldn't say much wrong now. It was only her age. If she said she was 50 years old, that would be highly unlikely anyway. It would be fine.

"Yes, I'm 25 years old," Sakura answered.

"25? You're three years old than Kiba? That's not really the same age," Tsume said. She hid it quite good, but her son couldn't help but gawk. He had been sure she was the same age as him or younger. To him it was more likely she was 19, but 25? All three of them looked confused at each other, but for different reasons. Tsume had always guessed her son would be the dominant kind, since, well, he was _her _son. Now she had learned that not only had he a tolerance for pain that was lower than a 10 year olds, but he was also into older women. Kiba was confused because she had looked so young, but was three years _older_ than him. The pink head's confusion had roots in her belief that a mature looking guy like Kiba would be at least her age.

"Oh, I thought you meant _around_ the same age, which 25 totally are." Sakura stuffed her face with food. A new awkward atmosphere formed around them like a barrier. Sakura really wanted the evening to end.

"Sorry, can you show me where the toilet is, _Kiba?_" The question was really more an order than anything else. They excused themselves, and Kiba led the way.

"Here you go." Kiba showed her the door that led into the restroom. Instead of going in, Sakura turned to Kiba.

"You're 22 years old?" she questioned. He could've only have guessed that was the real reason for bringing him there.

"Yes, grandma, I am."

"_You_." Her voice was full of venom.

"_How_ do you know Ino when you're three years older?"

"We grew up together. We were neighbours."

"And Sasuke? How come you were at his party?" he asked.

"It's not like there were only 22 year olds there! Besides, Sasuke is 23," she replied. Kiba didn't admit he had no idea Sasuke was a year older.

"Still, you're kind of a grandma compared to him."

"He's two years younger than me. It's not like it's," Sakura tried to find something good to say, "three."

"You're such an old lady!"

"Hey! You're the kid!"

"Then what is Sasuke?"

"He's a year older than you!" They both stared at each other with spite.

"And the roses," Kiba said, "_Roses_?" Sakura smirked.

"They were so pretty, sweetiepie."

"My mom will worry about how she has raised her son! The person you described," Kiba had to lean his arm onto the wall to not rage at her, "First of all, that has never been me. Second, my mother-" Sakura interrupted him.

"Blah, blah, blah." Her childish behaviour didn't impress Kiba. "Maybe you're not as "manly" as you think you are. Mother this, mother that." She folded her hands together. "Please save me from my mother. I'm so scared of her. Oh, and by the way, you have to behave like this- No, not like that! What will my mother think?" she mimicked.

"That's not me at all!" Kiba yelled.

"I never said it was, but you obviously see the resemblance!" she yelled back.

"Can you act nice for _once_?"

"You used me!"

"I only pretended you were my girlfriend, and it was for like two seconds!"

"You kissed my cheek!"

"I kiss my mom's cheek, it's not like it's a big deal!"

"Sissy," Sakura spat. That drew the line for Kiba, and Sakura soon found herself pushed against the wall. His anger made adrenaline pump throughout his whole body, and his sudden strength kind of scared Sakura. She held his gaze though.

"You," he said, "I'm so sick of you. I've known you since two days ago, but you're still the person I despise the most!"

"Then maybe you should've found someone else to play your girlfriend!"

"Play?" a voice that belonged to neither of them asked. Their heads quickly turned to the owner of the voice, though they already knew who stood there. "What do you mean 'play'?" Tsume asked. Her hands were on her hips, and her animal-like eyes glowed. It was creepy.

"Mom, please don't-"

"WHO is the person you brought home?" she asked. Sakura pushed Kiba away, and turned towards Tsume.

"I'm sorry," she said with a bow. "It's true that my name is Sakura Haruno. Also, I really am 25 years old and a doctor, or studying to become one. However, I'm not Kiba's boyfriend." Instead of going completely mad, doing things like throwing furniture on Kiba, which was what he had expected, Tsume held her face in her hand and sighed. They had to use the rest of the evening to explain the actual situation. Tsume took it way calmer than Kiba thought she would. Way, way calmer. And that made him a little worried. Around 11 o'clock, Sakura and Kiba sat in the car outside her home. Kiba's fingers drummed on the steering wheel. They both wanted to say something, but neither of them knew what. Kiba glanced at Sakura. She really looked younger than 25. The long hours she had used on studies and work barely showed at her spotless skin.

"You know, you look amazing considering your age."

"I'm 25, Kiba," Sakura said. "Still in my 20s."

"Well, you are, nevertheless, beautiful." Sakura's flushed face made Kiba smile.

"Even though it didn't go very well, thank your mother for the dinner," Sakura said.

"Will do," Kiba replied. They sat quietly for a few more awkward seconds before Sakura opened the door, and stepped out of the car. She didn't close the door right away, but leaned slightly inside the car.

"You don't look too bad yourself," she commented. Kiba grinned. They bid their farewells, and Kiba drove home. A disaster of a dinner had just passed. Now he had to convince Sasuke to go on a date with Sakura. Life didn't favour him.

* * *

_To be continued._

**I'm so sorry for the crappiest ending ever. My imagination sort of just ended there. To be honest, I'm not that happy with this chapter at all. I may rewrite it someday, but for now this was chapter three. Hopefully you didn't have to suffer through it. If you like the story, stay tuned for chapter four! :) **


	4. A Week Together

**I apologize for the delay. To be honest I haven't felt inspired to write for the past two months or so. The good news is that I've lately been eager to continue on my fan fictions. **

**Thank you for every favourite, review and follow!**

**Disclaimer: None of the characters—except for Yuki—are mine.**

* * *

The Name Sakura Haruno

Chapter 4: A Week Together

* * *

They scared him. His onyx eyes were terrifying. Also, he seemed to like the suspense. Kiba didn't like it at all. Instead of torturing him like this with his scary and emotionless stare, he should just say something. Anything.

"You promised her I would go on a date with her?" Ah, the suspension was over. The relief made Kiba sink further down his seat. That, or the scary _glare _of Sasuke Uchiha.

"Y-yeah, sorta," Kiba mumbled. The mumble was actually more like an ashamed whisper. Sasuke didn't like when people couldn't speak properly.

"Open your mouth when speaking," he ordered.

"Yes, I did…promise her that," Kiba repeated. A sigh escaped the raven's lips. How he knew so many dumb people, he would never know.

"That's not going to happen," he stated. The reply didn't surprise Kiba. However, he had it all planned out.

"I'll do your housework for a week," he said. Sasuke huffed.

"No, that's—"

"A month."

"That's not—"

"Two months?" Kiba asked unsure. His resolve started to falter.

"I don't want you to do my housework for even a day! I'm perfectly capable of cleaning my own apartment. Besides, you would only create a mess."

"Hey, I can clean!"

"I've seen your apartment."

"Crap!" There was no secret Kiba wasn't really the most qualified at being a housemaid. His stupid plan had pretty much gone down the drain. Now he had to find something else to tempt Sasuke with.

"She has really pretty legs," he lured.

"I've seen her; crazy, annoying, fan-girl. Just no."

"Man, com on! I said I'd easily fix the date for her!"

"You must feel pretty stupid now," Sasuke replied. Kiba shot him a glare. However, he had more up his sleeve.

"I'll give you blackmail material about Naruto." At this Sasuke rose an eyebrow. When he reached out his hand, Kiba felt like he had hit jackpot. However, right before Kiba could shake his hand, he retreated it.

"How do I know if you're speaking the truth?" Sasuke asked.

"Didn't you want revenge for him giving up your address and number to the Sasuke freak club?" Kiba smirked. Freak seemed more fitting than fan. Sasuke shook Kiba's hand.

"Deal." And thus, yet another dinner was settled.

* * *

The only thing Kiba could do was to stand there and stare. She was jumping up and down, clapping her hands like an excited child. Her pink hair was swaying back and forth.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," she squealed as she was about to hug him before remembering who he really was. "You are awesome!" she yelled. Kiba laid his hand over her mouth to quiet her down.

"Yeah, cool. Perhaps time to calm down?" he suggested. Sakura pried his hand of her mouth and laughed cheerily.

"I could kiss you right now!" she exclaimed.

"That…would make me quite uncomfortable." She didn't hear him though, because she was too busy thinking about what clothes to wear on the date. Kiba had to snicker when he saw her looking at herself in the mirror. She held up her hair in many different fashions while rubbing her tummy, wondering about losing a bit of weight.

"Well then. My work is done," Kiba said and turned to leave. Before he got to turn the doorknob, a hand held unto his wrist. He turned questionably.

"Where are you going?" Sakura asked.

"Home…?"

"Of course not. You're having lunch with me!" she said.

"What?"

"You know Sasuke. Therefore, you'll help me so that Saturday will be a success."

"I still don't understand what you're puking."

"You know Sasuke better than me. Therefore, you will tell me all about him," Sakura explained. She had already put on her shoes and jacket before he got to refuse. Since Kiba's mother had refused him of borrowing her car after the disastrous dinner, they walked together to the café they had met at before. Kiba learned that Sakura was quite the talker. She mostly told him about her scary boss, guys she had dated and why the new mall was a failure. He couldn't help feeling he was treated like a female friend. At the café Sakura was more interested in him talking about Sasuke. She wanted to know _everything_ as she put it. Kiba had to tell her all kinds of uninteresting stuff about him, which he didn't really know much about anyway, like his favourite food, favourite movie, favourite music etc. The list went on and on.

"Why are you so interested in that stuff anyway?" he dared to ask. Sakura gave him a look that told him how ridiculous he was.

"Isn't that obvious? I have to match my interests to his!" Her answer sounded so absurd to Kiba's ears.

"OK…? Shouldn't a potential relationship be built on honesty? It doesn't sound like a good idea to lie to him about your interests to get him to like you." Sakura couldn't care less about his moral speech and was more interested in a silly detail.

"You think Sasuke and I have a potential relationship?" She clapped her hands together. "I'm so happy!"

Kiba sighed. He honestly didn't. Sasuke wasn't interested in fan girls, and Sakura was the more than perfect example of one. Sakura continued asking questions about Sasuke. Her interest had changed from his favourite whatever to his exes, which wasn't a lot. However, Sakura got pretty upset after hearing about his earlier two years relationship with a model, which totally wasn't a lie Kiba made up because he was sick of all the questions and her stupid reason for asking them. Suddenly Kiba stood up. Sakura had a puzzled look on her face.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"All this questions about him…aren't these things you should get to know while talking with _him_?" he more stated than asked. She opened her mouth to answer, but shortly closed it again when she couldn't come up with a good answer.

"Have a good date," he told her. "By the way, I gave you the time and place, right?"

Sakura nodded. "Six o'clock at the fancy restaurant on the east side of the park," she mumbled, still confused at his sudden departure. Had she said something wrong? Kiba nodded to confirm that her information was correct.

"Bye then." He gave her a short wave and left. Sakura felt a little bit lonely after he had exited. She also felt kind of bad for dragging him to the café and bombarding him with questions.

"I have to make it up to him," she said to herself.

* * *

The next day Kiba got a call on his way to university. He wasn't exactly thrilled to see that it was Sakura who was calling. If she had more questions now, he would hang up on her right away.

"Yes?" he said in a grumpy voice. He had an early lecture. Who called this early in the morning anyway?

"Wow, you're in a great mood."

"I'm on my way to school. Be quick."

"Look, I just wanted to apologize for dragging you to the café. I know you only promised to arrange the date with Sasuke, but if it helps to lighten your mood, you should know that you've been a great help," she said. Kiba huffed. Even though he wanted to, Kiba couldn't stay annoyed at her after she had said that.

"It's OK. I mean, what wouldn't you do for a friend? After all, we've known each other for five days," Kiba said sarcastically. Sakura laughed.

"Hey, to make up to you, how about bowling tonight?"

"Tonight? Well…"

"I'll pay."

"OK."

They arranged when they were going to meet, and ended the conversation.

It was a long time since Kiba had bowled. In high school, he and his friends had often gone bowling and playing at arcade centres. However, after he actually managed to enter the veterinarian school, he hadn't much time to do nothing but study and meet dangerous pink-haired women…or woman.

There was a chilly wind when he walked from the bus stop to the bowling hall. His mother had still not forgiven him, so driving her car was out of the question. Being broke was a student luxury Tsume had said, teasing him about not being able to buy a car. He could've probably bought a crappy one, but even that would take its toll on his wallet, and it wasn't like his chances with women would grow any bigger with a shabby car. Suddenly he felt a gust of air behind his left ear, and it felt much warmer than the cold wind. Pink hair strands were soon visible before his eyes and a pair of green eyes looked at him.

"Hey, Kiba!" Sakura smiled.

"Do you usually blow at guys' ears?" he asked jokingly. He refrained from telling her that she probably shouldn't because it felt strangely intimate.

"Only the handsome ones," she replied with a teasing smile. Was she flirting? What a girl. She kicked him in the nuts, told him she could kiss him, bombarded him with questions about his guy friend, and flirted with him. There was doubtfully anyone more rollercoaster than her.

"Yeah, I'm such a girl magnet," he mumbled sarcastically.

"That Yuki-girl seemed to be interested in you."

"Well, she's crazy, so she hardly counts," he replied. Sakura laughed. They soon arrived at the bowling place. It wasn't packed with people; however, most of them were high scholars.

"Ah, high school," Kiba sighed in nostalgic thoughts while they put on bowling shoes.

"You miss it?" Sakura asked.

"I miss having an excuse for being stupid," he answered. "My friends and I often spoke against the teachers and played pranks. After school we would bowl and go to an arcade centre, or just hang out somewhere random. It was nice." He smiled at the high school memories. "And you? How was your high school experience?"

"Not filled with games and pranks, I can assure you," she said light-heartedly. "I studied a lot. My dream to be a doctor motivated me everyday to work as hard as I could." Kiba silently admired her for that. Even though he didn't slack too much from school because of his own dream to become a veterinarian, he didn't go for it as whole-heartedly as her. They moved to the bowling lane.

"Which school?" he asked.

"Konoha," she answered.

"Really? You went to the same school as me? Wow. Well, I guess we never went there at the same time, considering you're a grandma."

"No, we didn't, kiddo. When you entered, I was already finished. I distinctly remember rejoicing over the freshmen that had to suffer the same three years I had just completed," she said. Kiba snickered. They looked through the different bowling balls. Kiba noticed Sakura looked at the fairly heavier ones.

"Who was your teacher?" he asked.

"Ibiki Morino," Sakura answered with a shudder. "The most frightful man that's ever lived." Kiba could only gape. He had heard many rumours about him, but had been lucky enough to get Kakashi Hatake as his teacher. Even though he was strict, he was also kind of friendly. At least when he got over the fact that over half the class consisted of morons.

They exchanged stories from high school. Kiba told her about trouble he and Naruto often got into because of both of their mindlessness. Sakura burst out laughing when she thought of how angry the old man Sarutobi had to have been. Their pranks seemed to often revolve around making the principal's life difficult.

The stories of people feeling Ibiki's wrath made Kiba shiver just by imagining it. He had once caught Naruto while Naruto had peeped at the girls changing. The usual sunshine boy hadn't smiled for days.

"I think we're forgetting to bowl," Sakura giggled.

"Yeah…It was fun talking like this. You're actually pretty decent when you put your violent side aside," Kiba dared to say. Sakura didn't care about the slightly offensive comment, because she had a great time herself.

When they started bowling, Kiba was pretty sure he would crush her. An inexperienced girl like herself would probably fail miserably, and he had no plans to be humble about his victory. Turned out Haruno wasn't such a bad player after all, even after using several hours with her head in a book instead of hanging with friends and having fun. Her amounts of strikes made Kiba realise that _he _would most likely be the loser, and Sakura didn't seem to be very humble about it either.

"Cha! Strike again!" She smirked at Kiba. "What are you going to do, dog boy?"

"Dog boy?" he asked.

"Well, some of your traits are doglike," Sakura stated. "Like your canine teeth." Kiba couldn't help but to self-consciously touch his teeth with his tongue. The laughter that arose from his pink-haired bowling rival made him scrunch his eyebrows, becoming even more insecure.

"Don't worry, it looks good," she assured him. That made him slightly blush, but he tried to cough it away.

After a well-played match on both sides, that Kiba managed to win after all, they wandered in the streets of Konoha for a bit, slowly reaching Sakura's house.

"What were they going to send you?" Kiba suddenly asked.

"Who were going to send me what?" Sakura asked back.

"That was my question," Kiba said with a smile. "The day I called your name when you were at the phone."

"Ah, the day of our fateful meeting," Sakura said like an oracle. She laughed playfully. He glanced at her. Her eyes had been sparkling since yesterday. It seemed like she really liked Sasuke.

"It was just some boxes from my old home," she answered.

"Old home?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, I lived in Iwa for two years."

"Why Iwa of all places?"

"My mother thought a change of scenario would do me good."

"How come?"

"On account of my rage," she said with a flushed face. Kiba grunted amusedly. Sakura punched him playfully, which still hurt. He stroked his sore arm.

"Don't mock me! I'm better than I was, you know." Kiba's eyes widened. If she was better now than before, how bad did she use to be?

"Oh, don't give me that look!" she said when she noticed the shock in his eyes. They walked in silence for a while. It was nice. Neither of them felt the need to talk all the time, and that without any awkward silences occurring. The street where Sakura lived was nice. None of the houses were big, but it had a nice atmosphere, and the yards were all well tended. They stopped before Sakura's door.

"Thank you for hanging out with me today," Sakura said with a sweet smile.

"Thanks for the invitation," Kiba said back.

"Goodbye," she said, with one hand on the doorknob.

"Bye then. Sleep well." Kiba was about to turn around, but suddenly the small frame of the pink-haired woman hugged him. Before he could react, she had already let go and opened the door. Kiba just stared at the door closing. That was…odd. For a couple of minutes he just stood there, fazed by what had just happened. Then he did the only thing he could do. Go home.

As he closed the door of his apartment, he couldn't help noticing a strange feeling in his chest. His heart was beating rapidly.

* * *

It wasn't like they had planned it or anything. Sometimes life just likes to play a game called "coincidences" with you. As he walked into the more and more familiar café, a girly—and also more and more familiar—voice called out after him. How tempting it was for him to not turn around and recognise the woman sitting at the table. Gulping down spit that was barely there because of his dry mouth and anxiety, he turned around and greeted the pink-haired woman.

"What a coincidence!" Sakura said as he sat down in front of her. He agreed with a nervous gesture that was somehow a wave and crossed his legs. She gave him a weird look, but didn't comment on his behaviour.

"You're here to study, huh?" she asked, and nodded at his bag full of books.

"Y-yeah, it's a nice environment for studying." He crossed his legs again. Sakura agreed.

"I'm here to meet Ino actually. Time to rub it in her face that I've got a date she can only dream of," Sakura said with a shrewd smile.

"Is that such a good idea?" Kiba asked with a sceptic look.

"Yeah, sure," was Sakura's simple reply. He shook his head. She was something of her own, that was for sure. He thought about disturbing Sakura's precious eating cake time, and tell her that he should probably go to the library instead. It was hard to say how Ino would react if she saw them like this. Her curiosity when he had called her to get Sakura's number had been of the stubborn give-me-gossip type.

However, speaking of the devil and he arrives. Kiba was suddenly embraced in a hug from behind. Blonde hair strands fell over his shoulder.

"And what are you doing here with my dear friend Cotton Candy, Kiba?" Ino Yamanaka asked. "Perhaps this is a…date?" she suggested.

Sakura snorted "Hah! You will be shocked when you hear who my real date is," she said smugly. Ino gave her a confused look.

"I asked you to come here to tell you that I, Sakura Haruno, have a date with Sasuke Uchiha," Sakura said and flipped her pink hair. The blue eyes of the Yamanaka widened, and she loudly breathed inwards.

"Sakura! How could you?" Ino let go of Kiba and stomped on the ground. He sensed a catfight. He didn't get one though. Instead, he got something that almost flipped him out of his chair.

"How could you say that with Kiba around? And when you're on a date and everything!" Ino stomped on the ground again.

"Wait, what?" Kiba asked in confusion, and spun his head around to look at Ino.

"Ino, what are you talking about?" Sakura asked.

"He called to get your number, and now he's finally on a date with you, but you talk about Sasuke!"

"You called me because you wanted to go on a date with me?" Sakura asked Kiba.

"No, it was about the dinner—" he tried to explain before he was interrupted.

"You went to eat dinner together?" Ino shrieked.

"No, Ino, that was—" Suddenly he wasn't seated in the chair anymore. "Why are you dragging me outside?" He didn't even manage to wave goodbye to Sakura before he was dragged out of the café. While Ino dragged him down the street, she mumbled to herself.

"How could she, that little… And with Sasuke of all… I expected… No, this is bad… Poor Kiba…"

"It's not poor me," Kiba said. Ino stopped and spun around.

"Yes, it is! Doesn't it hurt when she talks about another guy in front of you?"

"No."

"Oh, poor Kiba, you don't have to play tough."

Kiba sighed. "Why do you even think I would be hurt? And about asking for Sakura's number…you got the wrong reason!"

"Naruto told me you were going to ask Sakura out on a date!" she explained.

That damn fly. _If you tell someone, at least give them the whole story_, Kiba thought to himself.

"Well, that's kind of the truth, however, no, it was not anything romantic. It was a request…"

"Request?" Ino questioned.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, let's end it there."

"If you say A, you have to say B!" she insisted.

"There's no B for you to know!" Kiba stubbornly replied.

Ino huffed. "Fine," she said, "so you don't like her then?"

"No."

"Not even a little bit?"

"No."

"There's not even a single little extra heartbeat when she's near you?"

"…No."

"You hesitated!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Stop it, there's really nothing!" he shouted. "We're just friends." _I guess,_ he added in his mind. If they could really be called friends, was something he wasn't sure of himself.

"Ugh, now my plans are in the drain!" Ino said, dismayed, and sat down on the edge of the sidewalk.

"Plans?" Kiba asked.

"If she got together with you, I could have Sasuke!" she said excitedly. "But now she even has a date with him." She went back to sulking. _Women_, Kiba thought.

* * *

Later that day, Kiba got his second phone call from Sakura. This time she invited him to the movie theatre.

"Why don't you go with Ino?" Kiba asked on the phone.

"Because she doesn't want to talk with me!" That wasn't a big shocker.

"Then find someone else?" he suggested.

"Why?" Sakura asked.

"Because I'm not in the mood for a movie," Kiba replied.

"Then we can go tomorrow," she said. Kiba sighed.

"Who says I'm in the mood tomorrow?"

"I do," Sakura said. "Besides, it'll be fun. There's a great film in the movie theatre right now!"

"A romantic one?" he asked.

"Romantic _comedy_," Sakura corrected.

"Find a girl," Kiba said.

"Come one!" Sakura whined. She huffed when Kiba didn't answer.

"Too manly to watch romantic movies?" she taunted.

"No, I simply have better taste," he reasoned. He smirked when Sakura slightly growled.

"Don't you have other friends?" Kiba then asked.

"They're all busy."

"What makes you think I'm not? Besides, don't you have a lot to do, too?"

"Not tomorrow at eight o'clock. See you then!" She hung up. Kiba's grip on the phone tightened.

So apparently he was watching a romantic comedy tomorrow night with the girl that made his heart rate increase.

* * *

The movie sucked big time. Who actually liked this syrupy mess of a film? Kiba noticed there were a lot of couples watching the movie. A couple of girl friends too. Some couples hadn't watched it at all because their hands and lips had been over each other since the commercials had been on. What a waste of precious money. Well, the money would have been wasted even if they watched it.

It seemed like Sakura liked it though. Her eyes had been glued to the canvas the whole time. He assumed girls were generally more into these kinds of things. Her hand reached for the popcorn on his lap. She was close enough for her smell to hit Kiba's nose. She smelled like a flower. Kiba slightly blushed when he caught himself thinking about her smell.

"Kiba, is something wrong?" Sakura whispered in his ear. Bad timing to get even closer to a guy that's already very aware of your presence. He coughed to suppress the blush.

"No, everything's fine," he murmured. She leaned even closer.

"What?" she asked, not able to hear him above the noise of the film. Kiba shook his head to say it was nothing. Sakura still leaned over a third time.

"Do you understand why that guy that has a crush on the main girl just doesn't confess his feelings? Is it a guy thing?" she asked.

"I don't know. Maybe he's insecure?" Kiba suggested. Sakura gave him an odd look.

"Why? He's hot," she bluntly said. Kiba stifled a chuckle. He noticed Sakura's hand on the armrest, and he got a strange urge to hold it in his own hand. Kiba brushed it off, and figured it was because of all the couples. It set the mood.

He tried to concentrate on the movie. Sakura was right about the guy. He would think about her every second she was in the same room as him, and his heart beat quicker by a mere brush of arms. Kiba suddenly felt something brushing his own arm. He looked next to him. Sakura had just moved to sit better. His heart, though, weirdly began increasing its pace.

At the end of the movie when the insecure guy had finally gotten the girl, Sakura grabbed his hand when they kissed. At first Kiba thought his heart was going to jump out of his chest, but then he realised she was only excited to see the happy ending. Her tears run down her cheeks one after the other. Kiba couldn't help but think it was cute that she got so excited over a movie.

The odd thing was when they left the movie theatre. Sakura's fingers were still entwined with his own, and she seemed to not mind at all. She swung their hands back and forth, and talked enthusiastically about the movie. They walked down the sidewalk towards the bus stop. Suddenly a familiar figure walked on the same sidewalk, but in the opposite direction. The figure stopped at the sight of them.

"Kiba…" the figure said. Kiba and Sakura looked at the person.

"Yuki," Kiba greeted, "hi." Yuki looked at Sakura, and then at their entwined hands.

"You and you girlfriend are together and happy, I see," she said. Kiba looked at Sakura, not really knowing what was OK to say.

"Yes, we are," Sakura replied. "Kiba's the best!" She let go of Kiba's hand, and hugged his side instead. Yuki smiled weakly.

"That's…good." She looked at Kiba.

"It was nice seeing you again. Bye," she slightly waved, and walked past them.

"Yeah, see you…" He stared after, which Sakura thought was a little weird.

"Is everything alright?" Sakura asked. He smiled at her.

"Yeah, everything's good," he answered. They continued walking towards the bus stop, but they were no longer holding hands. Kiba looked down at his hand. Somehow it felt kind of empty. When they stood at the bus stop, it was obvious that Sakura had something she wanted to ask, but she never spoke before the bus arrived.

"Kiba, you're a great guy," Sakura suddenly commented.

"Uh, thanks," he said. He looked away from her to hide his reddened face. They entered the bus. When they sat down, she spoke again.

"Your future girlfriend will be one lucky woman," she said, and gave him a warm smile. Kiba's eyes flickered around the bus. He didn't even know if he should say thank you or not. For the next few stops they just sat there in something that, for Kiba, was an extremely awkward silence. It didn't bug him at all that Sakura's stop wasn't far ahead. The bus was quite empty. After all the clock was probably over ten, and most people were probably at home watching TV or something. Suddenly Sakura leaned her head on Kiba's shoulder. Kiba slightly jumped, but he didn't dare to look at her. He awkwardly coughed.

"Are you asleep?" he asked.

"No," Sakura answered, "just a little tired." Kiba didn't want her stop to come yet. He glanced at her. Her eyes were closed, and she lay completely still against his shoulder. His heart thumped loudly in his ear. This was ridiculous. He barely knew her, and he had set her up on a date with his friend. Still, he couldn't help wanting to stroke her cheek gently. He couldn't help feeling that she _should_ rest on his shoulder. The hot-tempered maniac had grown on her. Kiba didn't mind.

It was time for her to leave the bus. She smiled at him before she rose up.

"Thank you for joining me at the movies," she said. Kiba smiled.

"No problem," he replied. Her eyes flickered a bit. She seemed reluctant to leave.

"Bye," she said, and then she did it again. She hugged him. Before she could retract, Kiba hugged her back. Her flowery smell overpowered his senses, and he was sure that if she hadn't let go of him then, he would've kissed her. She had been so close he could've cupped her cheeks in his hands and kissed her. Sakura left the bus, and waved at him when the bus drove. He had wanted to kiss her. Kiba's hand flew to his mouth. He had almost kissed her.

* * *

The next day, the day before Sakura's date, Kiba didn't care to go to vet school. He stared at the white ceiling in his bedroom. It was already noon, but he hadn't bothered getting up from his bed. He had spent four days with her. It felt weird. Kiba had always been a woman repeller. Women didn't see him in a romantic way. The only one that had uttered the words 'let's get together' had been Yuki, and it was only to replace some other guy.

Though Sakura didn't view him like that, she had invited him both to the bowling centre and the movie theatre. She had hugged him twice. It was more than what other women had done. He hit his chest to calm down his heart.

"I don't like her. It's only because she acts different than other women," Kiba assured himself.

Kiba lay in his bed for a while more. When he decided he had thought enough about pointless things, he walked into the kitchen to get something to eat. To his dismay, there was no food to find except for expired milk.

"Ugh, I have to go to the supermarket," he murmured.

The supermarket was only a 10 minutes walk from his apartment, but it was enough for him to consider not eating that day. He felt miserable, and he didn't like that the most likely reason was a girl he had known for only a week. In the supermarket there were a lot of elderly people. Most people his own age or younger attended school in these hours. Even so, his blond friend almost tackled him from behind.

"Kibs, I've missed you!" he said in a smoochy voice, and kissed his cheek.

"Gross. Get away from me!" Kiba yanked his friend, Naruto, away from him, and continued walking towards wherever the milk was. How come he never learned where things were placed in this supermarket? An annoyed sigh escaped his lips.

"Kyaa, you're so cold, Kiba. So handsome!" Naruto batted his lashes, which made Kiba want to puke.

"Take your love somewhere else," he said. Naruto laughed.

"Well, joking aside, why are you walking in here like a lost puppy?" Naruto asked.

"Where's the milk?" Kiba rudely asked, ignoring—though kind of answering—Naruto's question.

"Pfft, not here," Naruto said. "You still don't know your way around here? My, you're just a helpless little child without me. Follow me!" Kiba reluctantly did as he said. His pride said to go the other way, but he really wanted that milk.

"Where's the cereal?" Kiba asked with a carton of milk in his hand. The blond's eyes looked suspiciously at him.

"Please tell me that you have other food at home." The look on Kiba's face told Naruto he didn't.

"Are your plans to live on milk and cereal? What is it, a new diet?"

"I don't want to hear that from you, ramen freak," Kiba spat, a little more annoyed than he intended. Man, he was like a girl on PMS.

"You're acting like a girl on PMS," Naruto commented.

"Am not," he stubbornly refused.

"Yes, your annoying way of talking, the bitchiness… You're PMSing, dude."

"That's mean!" Kiba slightly yelled out. Naruto's look didn't seem to believe him.

"Fine, you win."

Naruto grinned. They continued walking to find cereal. Suddenly a flash of pink walked on the other side of the shelf. Kiba quickly bent down and dragged Naruto with him.

"Kiba, what—?" Kiba shushed him and looked at him with panicked eyes.

"She's _here_," he said.

"Who?" Naruto asked, confusion evident in his voice.

"Kiba?" a female voice asked. Kiba slowly turned his head. His smile was restrained.

"Sakura, what's up?"

"Uh, I'm currently witnessing two guys sitting on the floor at a supermarket." Kiba abruptly got up, which startled both the obnoxious blond and the gorgeous pinkette.

"How come you're in this part of town?"

"I'm going to visit Ino. I have to shove it in her face that it's me that's going on a date with Sasuke tomorrow." Sakura smiled a cunning smile, which scared Kiba and made Naruto want to pee in his pants.

"She lives nearby?" he asked.

She nodded. "I should probably take off. But thanks a lot."

"Uh, my pleasure…I guess?"

"I mean, thank you for setting me up on the date and for spending time with me this week. At first I wanted to crush your balls, but now I actually think you're really nice."

"…Thanks." As Sakura left, all the two boys could do were to stare, both a bit astonished at what she had just said.

"I've never heard a girl say they've wanted to crush someone's balls," Naruto said.

"She's not just any girl," Kiba said dreamily.

"Kiba, you're really turning into a girl. It's freaking me out." Kiba brushed him off and walked towards the register, hoping to get a last look at her.

"The cereal. It's Sasuke, isn't it?"

"Sasuke is cereal?"

"No!" Naruto grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. "The reason why you come to the supermarket shabby-looking and only have the intent to buy milk and cereal is because you're depressed over Sakura's date with Sasuke."

"Since when did you become an analyst?" Kiba snarkly remarked.

"I've watched a lot of The Mentalist," Naruto shrugged.

"You're hopeless." Kiba turned his back to him and continued to walk.

"At least I'm not hopelessly in love," Naruto mumbled, too low for Kiba to hear.

* * *

He poured the milk over the cereal as the six friends from New York were on the TV.

_...Oh, sorry. Did I get ya?…_

…_No, you didn't get me! It's an electric drill! You get me; you kill me!…_

"I've come to the realisation Naruto is just like Joey." Kiba snickered. "Except all the women." It then hit him.

"Ok, that's just sad. I'm worse." His thoughts got full of pictures of a certain pinkette. He rested his forehead on his palm and sighed. This was getting crazy. It had been one week. Feelings didn't stir after such a short time period. He took a large breath, but fell out of his stool when his cell phone called. As unfortunate as he was, his plate of cereal fell down with him, soaking his jeans with milk.

"Shit," he murmured. "Shit, this is just perfect." He looked at the caller. Before it managed to ring again, he urgently pressed the green button.

"H-hey." He got up on his feet; his lap still drenched from milk.

"It's me," Sakura said on the other end.

"Yeah, w-what's up?"

"Are you ok? You sound kind of weird."

"I spilled cereal all over myself." Sakura's gentle laugh sounded like an angel to Kiba. There was an awkward silence between them. Sakura coughed.

"I'm actually pretty nervous about tomorrow," she confessed.

"Really? Why?" he asked.

"Because it's Sasuke! Going on a date with him is a dream come true."

Kiba's heart sank. "Yeah…"

"Is everything ok?" she asked, unsure why he was so quiet.

"Everything's great," he tried to convince.

"Why did you call again?" Kiba asked.

"Because I'm nervous…and somehow you calm me down."

His heart rate increased. They continued talking for a bit. Sakura talked about how jealous Ino were, what she was going to wear at the date, that she hoped for a second date, and like that she went on and on.

"Thanks again, Kibs. I'll call you and tell you how the date went. Oh, the food's ready. Talk to you later. Bye!"

"Umm, that nickname isn't really—" She hung up. He stared at his phone. His forehead met with the counter. It wasn't fair of him to feel this way. He had made a promise to set her up on a date with Sasuke and so he had. It was his cowardliness that had put him in this situation in the first place. If only he hadn't been so desperate to escape from Yuki and the 'cute' daughter of his mother's colleague.

Who was he kidding? If he hadn't spoken her name that day, he wouldn't have gotten to know her at all. If he hadn't been such a loser, maybe she would've been attracted to him, too.

"She called me Kibs," he muttered. Well, if it was Sakura, he guessed it didn't really matter.

* * *

**_To be continued. _  
**


End file.
